


This is Home

by ohmymcgrath



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: And Lena loves her for it, F/F, Hint: it's with Kara, Kara is such a sweet little romantic, Pre-Relationship, SuperCorp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-11
Updated: 2017-09-11
Packaged: 2018-12-25 11:08:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12034641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohmymcgrath/pseuds/ohmymcgrath
Summary: Lena finally finds the home she's been searching for.





	This is Home

"Wait... What do you mean you don't have an apartment? Where do you sleep?" Kara asks, the usual effervescence of her voice now marred with confusion as she drops her uneaten pizza slice back on her plate.

Beside her, Lena freezes with her fork halfway to her mouth, her eyes widening at her slip-up.

She hadn't meant to say that; to respond to Kara's gentle inquiry about how she would love to see Lena's place someday with a snort and a mumbled 'if I had one.'

Looking back on the moment, she could admit that Kara's excitement had flustered her; the ease with which her best friend invited more closeness between them. Her best friend, whom Lena was fairly certain she was in love with. And with Kara's bright blue eyes and wide smile trained in her direction, Lena had stumbled and the confession had slipped out.

Now Kara is looking at her with her brows pulled together, and Lena can't quite catch her breath because she hates to be the cause of Kara's frown. She made Kara worry too much as it was.

After all, Lena only ate lunch most days because Kara insisted on stopping by with take out. Every time she would insist that she was simply 'in the neighborhood' or 'accidentally got too much food' which, Lena knew, was probably impossible. But Lena secretly loved that someone cared enough about her, that Kara cared enough about her, to worry and so she accepted the excuses and happily ate along beside her.

But Kara had her own life and a job and family and friends and Lena already felt selfish for taking up so much of her attention.

Still, looking at Kara and her frown, Lena finds she can't lie. Not to her.

"There's a living space in the lab."

Kara gapes at her. "You sleep in the lab?"

Lena would have felt embarrassed were it not for the utterly heartbroken look on Kara's face.

"But..."

"It's fine, Kara, really. It's not as if I couldn't get a place if I wanted one, it's just..." she trails off.

Her last place, a beautiful penthouse in one of National City's more modest but still luxurious high rises, was infiltrated by one of Lex's mercenary groups months ago. Thankfully, she hadn't been home and her security team had discovered the breach and handled it out of the eye of the media and any official authorities, but Lena hadn't been in a hurry to find another residence. If he could find that place, which Lena had leased under a false name, them he could find her wherever she went. L-Corp was her turf, at least. She felt safe there. Besides, it let her be close to work. It was a win-win.

Kara, it seemed, didn't see it that way. There were lines forming between her eyebrows in stark contrast to the ones that usually dotted her cheeks when she smiled. It wasn't pity, which Lena was thankful for. It was concern.

And Lena's heart both warmed and hurt at the sight of it.

Kara was so very good. And yes, Lena was definitely in love with her.

"Don't worry so much," she says fondly. "Your crinkle is showing."

As she'd hoped, Kara burst into a smile, her whole face changing into the expression Lena loved most, though some of the concern remained behind the blue of her eyes.

"I'm not worried," Kara insists, looking a little sheepish when Lena raises a challenging eyebrow. "I just imagined you having somewhere warm and cozy to go home to. Somewhere that feels like home. You deserve that."

Lena feels her throat tighten at her friend's words, feels the emotion threatening to bring tears to her eyes.

"I haven't had a place like that in a long time," she whispers, more a rumination to herself than a confession she intended to share, though she knows Kara hears her. The other woman slides closer to her on the couch, their thighs pressing together as she links their arms and rests her chin on Lena's shoulder.

She doesn't say anything. She doesn't need to, really. Her support, her friendship, her mere presence is more calming than any words could be, and Lena sits there beside her for a few silent moments enjoying her warmth and the gentle weight against her as she wishes, for the thousandth time, that she had the courage to tell Kara how much she means to her.

"Your pizza is going cold," she says instead, a smile tugging lightly at the corner of her mouth.

Kara waits for one more moment, a quiet question asked in that still in-between place where she waits to make absolutely sure Lena was okay, before she brightens and lets out a cheerful  _pfffft_.

"Cold pizza is the best pizza," she declares, stuffing a bite in her mouth as if to prove it. Lena sees her watching her out of the corner of her eye until she picks up her fork again.

They settle back into the easy comfort that accompanied their visits, coffee shop meet ups and lunches at Catco and dinners at L-Corp when Kara would notice her light still on as she left work. Lena dares to hope that the momentary rift between them had been forgotten.

But Kara looks thoughtful for the rest of the evening, fusses over her even more than usual and hugs her more tightly before she leaves.

* * *

It is two days later, a long Saturday afternoon that Lena spent in the office rather than, well, in the building, when Kara stops by again.

The visit takes her by surprise, as Kara usually spends her weekends with her sister or her friends. Lena has never quite had the courage to accept one of Kara's invites, but she knows enough about them to know that they're important to Kara (and of course what is important to Kara is important to Lena). So, she stumbles to a halt when she comes up from the lab to find Kara perched on the edge of the desk in her office, her legs swinging and her hands tapping against her knees as if she's nervous or excited or an anxious combination of both.

"Kara." Her smile comes as easily as breathing. Always, for Kara. "I didn't expect to see you today."

Kara is on her feet in an instant, bounding across the room with a huge smile on her face (excited, definitely excited).

"Lena, hey!" she says in a rush. "I hope I'm not intruding. I just wanted to check in and see how your day was going."

Lena wants to tell her that she could never be a bother, that she's welcome any minute of any day and Lena is so happy to see her. Instead, she does her best to look casual as she shrugs. "The usual. The board meeting ran late and of course our Chinese investors are still pushing me to drop the water purification project I'm developing because they don't think the profit margin is viable for long term investment. I tried to tell them that it will have other, more commercial, uses, but I do wish they would see the intrinsic value of the project."

She realizes as she drops the files she is carrying on her desk that she's rambling, and she feels the heat rise to her cheeks.

Kara, though, doesn't seem to mind. She's following her every word, her eyes wide and her smile bright, as if she actually finds it all fascinating. Lena scrunches up her nose.

"That's not important though." She turns her full attention to Kara. "How are you?"

Kara scoffs and steps closer, her fingers brushing against Lena's arm as she reaches for her. "It is too important. I love hearing about your day." Her voice has dropped, as if she wants to make sure Lena believes her. She lets the words hang between them, soft in the late afternoon light that spills between the blinds before she lights the room again with her smile. "But to answer your question, I'm great."

Lena is still trying to get her heart to settle, so she smiles and nods, mutters a quiet 'good' when she is able.

"Actually, I was wondering if you might be done for the day," Kara adds, and the excitement is back as she claps her hands behind her back.

Lena feels her thoughts flit instinctively to a list of things she could still get done tonight, but she ignores them.

Instead she says, with a smirk playing at the corner of her mouth, "I could be."

"Great!" Kara chimes. "Because I have a surprise for you."

There's something fuzzy tickling the space just below her ribcage, and Lena wonders if it's written on her face that her heart just flipped. Kara's eyes have softened, and in the beat of silence that Lena takes to try to find her words, she reaches for her again. Her fingers are playing with the fabric of her blouse, her touch barely there but so very _there_  at the same time.

Lena isn't used to surprises. She doesn't have much experience with them, see; nor with people who think about her enough to want to do anything special for her. Kara has been slowly introducing her to the feeling - her unplanned visits to L-Corp, the unexpected lunches and coffee dates-that-aren't-dates - but nothing quite like this. And this feels important for some reason she doesn't quite know yet.

"A surprise?"

Kara hums in the affirmative, one of her eyebrows arching in question and Lena realizes she's waiting for her to agree.

"Alright."

It slips out without her meaning it to, but she doesn't regret it. She doesn't regret it because Kara is back to that beaming smile and that fuzzy feeling in her chest grows into a warmth that almost matches the one that fills her at the sight of the dimples in Kara's cheeks.

"Perfect," Kara says happily, her hand delving into her coat pocket. "There's just one tiny condition."

Lena looks down to find a slip of fabric in Kara's hands.

"Is that- a blindfold?" Lena asks, her voice going a bit shaky.

Kara nods. "I want to take you somewhere, but you have to close your eyes." She's holding the fabric out like an offering now, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth and that wide, puppy dog expression Lena has always had a weakness for working its way across her beautiful face.

Lena doesn't stand a chance.

She closes her eyes with a small sigh and a smile.

She hears Kara let out a squeal of excitement and she's laughing until she feels the heat of Kara's body behind her, the brush of her fingers over her shoulders. Then a soft whisper and the lightest touch of fingertips at her temple, tucking her hair behind her ears. She swallows hard and tries to focus on her breathing as her heart begins to race.

Kara moves slowly, considerately- like she knows just how much trust Lena is placing in her in this moment. Like she knows, somehow, that a tiny flecker of nervousness has worked its way into the back of her stomach because she's vulnerable and that's something she's not used to feeling.

Or maybe she can just hear the fluttering of Lena's heart (which has nothing to do with nervousness and everything to do with the press of Kara's body behind her).

She feels the blindfold cover her eyes and the gentle tug at the back of her head as Kara ties it off.

"Okay?" Kara asks, and Lena answers with a soft 'yes.'

Kara steps away for a moment and she can hear the light tap of her feet as she moves around the room. When she comes back, she slips Lena's coat over her arms and settles the strap of her purse over her shoulder and for a moment Lena smiles, wondering at how Kara knows her well enough to know where she keeps her things and just what she needs to take with her.

But then she stops breathing when Kara says, "I'm going to pick you up, okay?"

Oh.

_Oh._

Lena nods, not trusting her voice to say the words.

She feels Kara against her side, her hand reaching to rest against her back so she won't take Lena by surprise. She is so gentle as she slides her other arm down Lena's legs and behind her knees, so careful as she lifts her and holds her close to her chest.

When her voice comes, it is closer to Lena's ear than she expected, and she shivers as Kara's breath brushes against her skin.

"Don't be afraid," she whispers.

Lena knows what is coming. Knows, even though she is with Kara, not Supergirl, and neither has ever expressly admitted to their being one and the same. Lena doesn't mind. She promised Kara, once, that no matter what, she would always stand beside her and she meant it. Kara would tell her when she was ready.

So now, as she shifts in Kara's arms, there is no frustration, no judgment in Lena's heart. Instead, there is a steady sort of thrill buzzing beneath her skin, a safety she's only ever felt once before when she was held like this - when Supergirl rescued her.

She barely feels Kara leave the ground. If it wasn't for the sudden gust of cool air and the wind whipping gently at her hair, she wouldn't have even known they had left her office. But there _is_ wind, a breeze tickling at her nose, and she can practically feel the empty space beneath her even though she can't see it.

Kara seems to be doing her very best not to jostle her too much. But she realizes, slowly yet all at once, that she doesn't mind. She hates flying, but this... this she might just like. She might just like it very much. Kara's arms are wound tightly around her, and she knows she won't fall. Better yet, though, is the fact that Kara is trusting her with this. It's not a confession, surely, but it's an inkling of sorts. A step into a part of Kara's life that, although she may not be able to share with her completely (and Lena understands the dangers, really she does), Kara does want her to be a part of. That's more than enough to drive her fears away and bring a smile to her face as she imagines the city below them and nestles just a little more into Kara's arms.

When they arrive at their destination - wherever that is - Kara sets her gently on her feet, keeping steady hold of her as she finds her footing.

She hears the light clink of a set of keys and a doorknob rattling and then a door being pushed open. Kara's hand slips into hers and guides her forward a few steps, and immediately she feels warm. Familiarity wraps around her like a blanket, soft and inviting and safe. Already, she has an inkling of where she might be. There is only one place, after all, where she feels so welcome.

A soft tug at the blindfold and then the fabric slips away and Lena pulls her bottom lip between her teeth as she forces her eyes to stay closed.

"Welcome home," Kara says quietly, a smile in her voice and on her face when Lena finally opens her eyes.

It is Kara's apartment.

It is Kara's apartment, with a spread of food laid out over the table, candles on just about every surface and a soft light shining from inside her bedroom.

Lena's eyes take in every detail. The care-worn furniture, the warm color of the walls, the way the candlelight bounces off the windows and makes it look like there are tiny fairy lights all around the room. Kara's favorite blanket where it is folded over the back of the couch, the book Lena had given her on the coffee table with a bookmark nestled halfway through.

"For tonight or as long as you wish, you're welcome here Lena," Kara says as she clasps her hands together, her eyes watching closely for Lena's reaction.

Lena tries not to cry; really she does. But the first of the tears are already spilling down her cheeks before she even realizes they were coming, and she has to press her hand to her mouth to stifle the sob that threatens to escape.

"Lena?"

Kara sounds worried, and she wants to explain but she can't take her eyes off the space around her, can't stop imagining Kara fluttering around as she tried to light all the candles with one of those big grins on her face and her apron still tied around her waist.

She did this for her.

She found out that Lena didn't have a place to go home to, and so she invited her into hers. It was just so very Kara. And only Kara. Only she, who could make Lena Luthor feel welcome and accepted and wanted and Lena's heart felt so full it might actually burst.

Before it could, she throws her arms around the woman beside her and hugs her; hugs her so tightly that it puts the pieces of her heart back together and she recovers enough to whisper a ragged, "Thank you."

She feels Kara's sigh of relief brush against her hair. "It's not too much?" Kara asks, the smile back in her voice.

Lena shakes her head, still clinging to Kara's neck. "It's perfect." _You're perfect._

When they finally part, Lena's tears have turned into a bright smile and Kara is beaming back proudly.

"First things first," Kara declares, her hands going to her hips. "You need to change.

Lena lifts an eyebrow and watches with amusement as Kara falteres. "I-I mean, not that you don't look great," she says quickly, her eyes running over Lena's form. "You look gorgeous. You always do."

She blushes. So does Lena.

"I just mean that you're supposed to be comfortable. At home," she clarifies. "I have extra pajamas."

Lena smiles, nods, watches as Kara instantly bounds off to her bedroom. She trails after her slowly, her eyes still taking in the space around her with wonder. It only increases tenfold as she steps out of the bathroom a few minutes later clad in an oversized hoodie and a pair of pajama bottoms with cartoon polar bears on them, feeling equal parts silly and absolutely ecstatic.

She can't explain why.

Kara had lent her a pair of clothes. It was a friendly thing to do (Lena saw it happen all the time in movies). But watching Kara's face light up when she saw her, feeling the warmth in her smile wash over her, it felt like so much more. At least to Lena, who couldn't even recall the last time she had been dressed so casually around someone else; the last time she felt so vulnerable and yet completely at ease. It felt like belonging.

"They fit!" Kara says excitedly, skipping around the island in the kitchen and instantly taking Lena's hand.

Lena smiles softly. "Yes. Yes they do."

There is a moment, then, where Kara just stares at her. Her head tilts to the side. It's only a fraction, but it is enough to make Lena think that maybe, just maybe, Kara knows what she meant.

Lena squeezes her hand before letting it go to run her fingers through her hair.

"So, what's next?" she asks.

Kara perks up again, and the moment passes. "Next is dinner."

Dinner turns out to be various dishes that Lena recognizes from no less than six restaurants around town, all scooped out of whatever takeout platter they came in and arranged on Kara's pretty white and blue serving dishes. When she raises an eyebrow over a plate of potstickers (the vegetarian ones from Noonan's that Lena would recognize from smell alone and knows for a fact that Kara never orders), Kara blushes.

"I did try to make dinner," she mumbles sheepishly. "Vegetarian lasagna. Eliza gave me the recipe over the phone. I even made pasta. But it, uh..." She trails off, her eyes falling to the floor as she bites her lip, and she looks so adorably miffed about her dinner not working out that Lena is reaching for her before she can even finish her sentence.

"This looks wonderful, Kara," she assures her softly, her thumb brushing against the underside of Kara's wrist.

Kara's breath leaves her in a huff of relief, and then she's smiling as she serves Lena a plate full of more food than she could ever eat. Her own plate is piled even higher.

"So tell me about this water purification project," Kara says as she sits beside her. There's an empty chair across from Lena, but Kara picks the one beside her and Lena is so busy hiding how ridiculously happy that makes her that she almost doesn't realize that Kara has spoken. That Kara really did hear her rambling earlier and, what's more, is actually _interested_  in what she said.

It's different.

_It's wonderful._

Lena spends the next thirty minutes alternating between appreciative mouthfuls of food and talking with Kara about her work. Kara listens attentively, asks questions, is encouraging when Lena expresses her doubts and even makes some helpful suggestions. It's been so long since she's sat at a kitchen table and talked about her day. The memory of Lex sitting at the overlong dining table at Luthor Mansion flits through her mind, a young Lena bounding through the hallway eager to tell him about her latest chemistry exam or her math project.

She thought she had felt accepted, then, but it is nothing compared to the soft familiarity of sitting next to Kara at her tiny kitchen table with their elbows bumping into each other. It is nothing compared to the pure sort of openness Lena feels as she confides in the woman who has become her best friend (and so much more) and watches as said woman surreptitiously wipes food she's dropped on her shirt more than once.

Lena loses track of how many plates worth of food Kara has devoured, only knows that she feels full when she finally looks up and notices that every one of the serving dishes is empty and Kara has a glazed and happy look in her eyes. She's the one who chuckles and tugs Kara to her feet, their fingers intertwining effortlessly as she pulls Kara towards the couch.

They fall into the cushions with matching smiles, Kara against one arm and Lena balancing somewhere in the middle knowing she should scoot against the other side but not wanting to stray too far from Kara's side. 

The candles have long since burned out and the lighting is so soft that Lena can barely see the buttons on the remote that Kara uses to turn on the TV, but Kara herself is still a beacon of brightness and light. Her hair, piled in a messy bun on top of her head, looks like a crown in the moonlight shining through the windows and the blue flicker of whatever movie she's turned on. Her eyes, so very blue, keep darting to the side - to Lena - and that fuzzy feeling is back between her ribs only now it's gone to her head, too. 

She is perfectly ready to blame that feeling (or the surplus of food or the glass of wine Kara poured for her as they ate) for the way she suddenly leans forward, her hand reaching for Kara. Kara stills, her eyes wide and curious, watching as Lena pauses and then reaches for the clips holding Kara's hair in place. The long strands fall to her shoulders, curling around her neck, and Lena wonders if she realizes just how gorgeous she is like this. Then she hopes beyond all hope that her feelings for the woman beside her aren't plastered all over her face because Kara has tilted her head and is looking at her - looking at her as if she can't quite believe what she sees. 

She's holding her breath, she realizes, so she parts her mouth so the air in her lungs can escape slowly. She thinks she's mistaken when she sees Kara's eyes drop to her mouth. She has to be mistaken... Right?

But she's not seeing things when Kara suddenly scoots towards her. She's not imagining the way their thighs press together - the warmth - or the way one of Kara's hands has covered her knee as she leans forward.

It's not a dream, although Lena has dreamt this more times than she can count.

Kara is so close that Lena can feel her breath on her face, can smell a trace of her perfume and a hint of what must be her shampoo, can feel the warmth of her seeping into her chest like a fireplace on a rainy day. For all the heat running through her, though, she sits absolutely frozen because _this can't be happening_. 

"Lena?" She asks it so softly it's more like a breath of air than a word, yet somehow it manages to be so full of feeling; a plea wrapped up in four familiar letters.

It is, she realizes. It's want and hesitation all at once, and Kara's eyes are dark and questioning as she watches her. And then Lena's world falls apart with three quiet words.

"Please say yes."

Kara can't mean it... She can't be asking for what Lena thinks - hopes - she is. But does it really matter? Does it matter what she wants, when Lena would give her anything?

So she whispers, as certainly as she can manage, "Yes." And she hopes.

Kara's lips are on hers as soon as she's said the word. It's gentle and soft; barely there and yet it changes _everything_.

Because Lena doesn't think she can ever let her go, now.

Her hands reach up to cradle Kara's face between her palms and Kara makes a small sound at the contact, a moan that Lena feels send a shot of heat clear down to her toes. She doesn't know who deepens the kiss, which one of them first parts their mouth. All she knows is that Kara tastes like wine and sunshine and her fingers are gripping her waist now and it's the only thing keeping Lena from drowning.

When they finally part, Lena is the first to draw her gaze upwards. Kara still has her eyes closed, her mouth parted as she draws in a long breath of air. And then she's smiling. It overflows into her eyes when she finally opens them.

"I, um," Kara starts to say and Lena realizes she's blushing. "I make really good pancakes. And I got you a toothbrush. You could... stay, if you wanted?"

_Always_.

Lena smiles. "I'd like that."

Kara tries to hide her breath of relief, but Lena sees it; feels it against her cheek because they're still so close. Kara, thankfully, doesn't seem inclined to leave her side. She shifts on the couch and holds her arms open and Lena slips into them, melting against her chest as if it's the most natural thing in the world.

Maybe it is.

Because in that moment she realizes that the home she's been looking for is right here. It's this apartment, with its soft colors and its mismatched furniture. It's this couch, with its worn cushions that dip just right so that Lena feels like she's being hugged (twice). It's being wrapped in Kara's arms, her head tucked beneath her chin and Kara's fingers tracing patterns into her stomach like she can't help reminding herself that this is real. It's the smile that Lena can't get off her face.

_This_  is home.

Kara and Lena fall asleep curled in each other's arms and don't wake until morning.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me @ohmymcgrath on Twitter :)


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